Structure and Possible Function of Vocalizations of Captive Red-Legged Seriemas (Cariama Cristata)
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University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Masters Theses Graduate School 5-2010 Structure and possible function of vocalizations of captive red- legged seriemas (Cariama cristata) Ami Elizabeth Padget University of Tennessee - Knoxville, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes Part of the Other Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Padget, Ami Elizabeth, "Structure and possible function of vocalizations of captive red-legged seriemas (Cariama cristata). " Master's Thesis, University of Tennessee, 2010. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes/651 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Ami Elizabeth Padget entitled "Structure and possible function of vocalizations of captive red-legged seriemas (Cariama cristata)." I have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree of Master of Arts, with a major in Psychology. Todd M. Freeberg, Major Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: Gordon M. Burghardt, Matthew A. Cooper Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official studentecor r ds.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Ami Elizabeth Padget entitled "Structure and possible function of vocalizations of captive red-legged seriemas ( Cariama cristata )". I have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, with a major in Psychology. Todd Freeberg, Major Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: Gordon Burghardt Matthew Cooper Accepted for the Council: Carolyn Hodges, Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School Structure and possible function of vocalizations of captive red-legged seriemas ( Cariama cristata ) A Thesis Presented for the Master of Arts Degree The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Ami Elizabeth Padget May 2010 ii Copyright © 2010 by Ami Elizabeth Padget All rights reserved. iii Acknowledgements With utmost gratitude to my advisor, Dr. Todd Freeberg, who put up with my unorthodox ways and gave of his time and wisdom. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Gordon Burghardt and Dr. Matthew Cooper, for their guidance and time. This project would not have been possible without the cooperation and support of the institutions that gladly welcomed my research including Knoxville Zoo, Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Sylvan Heights Waterfowl, San Antonio Zoo, World Bird Sanctuary, Wildlife World Zoo, and Riverbanks Zoo. I would like to extend my thanks to the members of my lab, Ellen Williams, Jessica Owens, Sheri Browning, Julie Bartmess-Levasseur, Carrie Branch and Chris Zachau, who read all my drafts and provided me with feedback which helped improve the manuscript. I would especially like to thank Karen Davis, my office mate, for her support, feedback, and friendship. I owe many thanks to the brilliant members of my wonderful family, Tom Padget, Vicki Padget, Pam Byers, and Katie Dietrich, who supported me every step of the way. My niece, Grace, and nephew, Martin, also provided me with much needed laughter during stressful times. Thanks to Colleen Sample, Eleanor Avery, and Gabriel Avery for wonderful summers and advice. A special thanks goes to my mother, Vicki, for her help with data collection. My parents have given of their time, love, and finances. I owe them a lot. Long live the Padget Pod! I would like to genuinely thank Jeffery Warren for sticking with me through it all. It's been a long, rough road, but we finally made it. Don't ever give up! Enough is never enough. In conclusion, none of this would have been possible without my Savior, Jesus Christ, who carried me through this journey. iv Abstract Very little is known about red-legged seriema ( Cariama cristata ) vocalizations and behavior. The focus of my research was to analyze the structure of red-legged seriema primary calls and to begin to test hypotheses related to their function. Captive red-legged seriema behavior, both vocal and non-vocal, was recorded at 7 institutions located in the United States from May 2007 through November 2008. To test whether calls serve a predator alarm function, seriemas were presented with a large stuffed dog, representing a predator stimulus, and 2 control stimuli, a large, stuffed penguin and a large, flowering potted plant. Baseline recordings with no manipulations were also made throughout the day, during the course of the study. All recordings of seriema vocalizations were assessed using sound analysis software to generate sound spectrograms for comparison. I identified three different note types within the seriema primary call: upsweep notes (U), ladder notes (L), and two-part notes (T). Each call begins with a set of U notes that increase in rate and lead into the main part of the call, which is made of L and T notes. Each note type was assessed for duration, frequency, energy, and entropy measurements. These measurements were reduced using factor analysis into two relevant factors. There were substantial differences across individuals for note type acoustic structure. Group differences in note types, including sex, location, and age, were not found. When presented with the dog model, vocal responses were given by only 3 individuals. Overall, it may be possible to identify individual seriemas by analyzing the structure of their primary call, which may allow researchers to identify individuals without physical markers. v Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 Overview..................................................................................................................................... 1 Seriema Background................................................................................................................... 2 Seriema Vocalizations ................................................................................................................ 3 Individual and Group Differences in Vocalizations ................................................................... 6 Function of Vocalizations in Different Contexts........................................................................ 8 Current Study............................................................................................................................ 10 Chapter 2 Methodology ................................................................................................................ 12 Subjects and Institutions ........................................................................................................... 12 Data Collection ......................................................................................................................... 12 Vocal Recordings and Analyses ............................................................................................... 15 Chapter 3 Results .......................................................................................................................... 20 General Patterns of Calling....................................................................................................... 20 Individual Differences .............................................................................................................. 22 Group Differences..................................................................................................................... 22 Stimulus Presentation................................................................................................................ 23 Naturalistic Behavior ................................................................................................................ 24 Chapter 4 Conclusions and Recommendations............................................................................. 26 Vocalizations............................................................................................................................. 26 Possible Functions of Vocalizations ......................................................................................... 28 Naturalistic Behavior ................................................................................................................ 30 Recommendations..................................................................................................................... 31 References..................................................................................................................................... 34 Appendix....................................................................................................................................... 41 Vita................................................................................................................................................ 67 vi List of Tables Table 1. Seriema Individual